The girlfriend of reformed criminal turned TikTok star Russell Manser has paid a heartfelt tribute to her lover after he died unexpectedly aged 56 over the weekend.
Manser was a serial bank robber who spent 23 years in Australian prisons, until he turned his life around and founded the ‘Voice of a Survivor’ charity to help victims of abuse.
The cause of his death has not yet been made public, but sources told Daily Mail Australia that a loved one found him “unresponsive” at a residential address in Sydney.
Manser had about 134,000 followers on TikTok and had recently shared a video about Asian gangs in prisons and, days earlier, the disappearance of missing Ballarat mother Samantha Murphy.
Fans and loved ones flooded social media to pay tribute to Manser, praising his work as an advocate for those who suffered physical, psychological and sexual abuse.
On Sunday night, his partner Liliana Gagic posted a series of photos of them together on Instagram.
Reformed criminal Russell Manser is pictured with his girlfriend, Liliana Gagic.
Russell Manser is pictured with his girlfriend, Liliana Gagic. He died over the weekend.
Liliana Gagic wrote a tribute to Manser after his death. “Farewell my lover, until we meet again,” she said.
In the caption, she wrote: “Goodbye my lover, until we meet again.”
Former inmate Max Beer posted a video with Manser on TikTok with the caption: “RIP my brother, my best friend.”
In the video, the couple talked about the importance of staying motivated and not comparing yourself to others. “Be happy with yourself,” Manser said.
Women’s rights campaign group Equality Light Gratitude thanked her for speaking out against domestic violence.
“He defended women and domestic violence issues in general, saying that it is never okay to use control, restraint or violence,” the TikTok post read.
‘What a great example of reform. Why did we have to lose one of the good men so soon? Prayers are with his loved ones.’
Another friend, Renee Mcnab, wrote a lengthy Facebook tribute to Manser in the early hours of Monday morning.
In the post, she said Manser encouraged her with calls and text messages, which “saved” her from relapse and returning to prison.
Liliana Gagic appears in the photo with Russell Manser. The cause of her death has not yet been made public.
Russell Manser published a book about his life of crime and the sexual abuse he suffered behind bars
“Russ saved me so many times it’s not funny, he saved me from relapse, he saved me from going back to prison with his words of encouragement, his phone calls and messages,” she wrote.
“Above all, it gave not only me but many others hope and strength when the system tried to break us.”
“It taught me that no matter what your past is like, your future can still be as bright as you want, you just have to work for it and always believe in yourself.”
Adam Washbourne, of an organization called Fighters Against Child Abuse, posted a tribute video on Facebook.
“Russell is much more than the final redemption arc, he is much more than the child abuse survivor who went from children’s homes to prison to have a media empire and a publishing deal,” he said.
“He’s also probably the best teammate you’ll ever have – he’s the absolute definition of joy when your teammates win, even if it doesn’t involve you.”
“I absolutely love you Russell and you will be missed dearly.”
Manser was the youngest of six children and grew up in Mount Druitt, in Sydney’s west.
Women’s rights campaign group Equality Light Gratitude thanked her for speaking out against domestic violence (pictured).
Former inmate Max Beer posted a video with Manser on TikTok with the caption: ‘RIP my brother, my best friend’ (tribute pictured)
His parents were British immigrants who supported their large family by working in factories.
He previously said there was no domestic violence or alcoholism in his family, but noted that convicted criminals returning from prison to Mount Druitt were almost rewarded by the community.
They had new cars, nice clothes, and attractive girlfriends, while everyone else seemed exhausted and miserable, waking up at 5 a.m. in the middle of winter to work a 10-hour shift in a factory.
The year he turned 17, he stole a Porsche from the wealthy suburb of Whale Beach on Sydney’s northern beaches and received a 12-month adult sentence at Long Bay Correctional Centre.
He recalled that a prison guard threw his mattress on the floor of a cell he shared with two men in a protective wing of the prison that was used to house convicted pedophiles.
“Have fun, guys,” the guard had said.
He was abused that night, and again a few nights later by a third inmate who offered him his first injection of heroin in exchange for his silence.
At the time, Manser had spent time in a youth detention center at Daruk Boys Home in Windsor, northwest of Sydney.
Russell Manser was a convicted felon who turned his life around and became an advocate for assault victims.
A few days into his six-month sentence, guards sexually abused him.
“The first night I saw staff getting the children out of bed and into the toilet block,” he told ABC’s Australian Story.
‘The second or third night I could smell one of the staff breathing on me, and his breath was like a sewer.
“He took me to the ablution block and sexually abused me.”
Authorities have since urged any man who attended the school between 1965 and 1985 to come forward. In 2018, at least 80 alleged victims were reported to have spoken openly about cases of physical and sexual abuse in the home.
Manser emerged from prison a shell of his former self and with a heroin addiction.
He then robbed five banks in the early 1990s, on one occasion stealing $90,000 from the Commonwealth Bank in Lane Cove, north of Sydney.
Manser committed five robberies in a few months and was sentenced to 15 years in prison at the age of 23, with a non-parole period of seven and a half years.
He set up a charity but it closed last July because victims were hesitant to come forward due to the NSW Supreme Court’s decision not to prosecute cases where the alleged perpetrator had died.
“It’s been very difficult lately,” Manser told Daily Mail Australia at the time.
Manser had a podcast called The Stick Up, which featured guests including businessman Mark Bouris, Australian rapper Ay Huncho, NRL star Liam Knight and former criminal turned porn star Dale Egan.
He also became known for revealing what life was like inside some of Australia’s harshest prisons and what their most infamous inhabitants were really like.
Manser is survived by his two children.
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